Since that dreadful night Kent appointed extra security all around the grounds making sure not one corner was left unwatched. Surveillance teams scattered around their entire neighborhood, taking account of comings and goings of unidentified vehicles.
Kent even secured a new cellular number and phone for Camelia immediately after Nathan Diam's call.
They recently learned the unknown number he called from could not be identified nor could they trace the location. Hackers and specialists were hired to break down the encryptionâsurprisingly none of them could crack down the serial code. It was claimed he used a high tech device preventing them from finding one single clue.
It kept them in a loophole. It only proved how cunning and devious Nathan was in his tactics. It set a alarm in them all. But this time they were going to ready for him.
Undercover men and women posed as students all around campus scouting the area whenever Camelia needed to attend university. Undetectable vehicles filled with the same men and women followed her where ever they went.
No risks were being taken with her safety. It was all Kent's doing she knew.
Deep down she hated it but there was no other choice. She understood the extreme measures needed to be taken, therefore, extreme precautions were taken. The only choice was accept the circumstance and learn to grow and overcome the hurtles life threw at her.
It was true a bigger part of Camelia was afraid, but another knew she was not powerless. Other parts were angry, depressed, sad, but those emotions were suspended and as cold as an iceberg within her. It was easy to succumb to the weakness, but she refused to be broken.
Yes, it was shocking to be knocked down but she pulled herself together and got right back up. She conquered her doubts and wore them like scars to remember what she endured and how important it was to keep fighting.
Resilience stronger than any form of power and failure was not an option.
Camelia drew in a deep breath and exhaled slowly watching a fog form in the chilly morning and hoisted her heavy backpack higher on her shoulder as she walked side by side with Kent.
He was a constant anchor and motivator, her own personal coach without even knowing it. His presence alone reminded her to stay strong. Whenever he was around she felt safe, cared for, important.
The center of his attention constantly, she felt his heavy stare out of the corners of her eyes. His sky blue gaze watched her not just for her safety but absorbed everything about her. Camelia continued to ignore the hints that he found her desirable and act like his eyes betrayed the emotions he was hiding. She constantly felt the tingling pressure of his scorching gaze dissecting the clothing off her body causing her cheeks to involuntarily flush pink.
It's as though he had X-Ray vision. And Camelia secretly enjoyed every minute of his attention.
As the days went by, she began to gradually take even better care of her appearance. Deep down she hoped to trigger more outward glances and smoldering looks he tried to disguise behind those glasses he wore.
So far it's been working for her.
Camelia continued to style her hair down, sometimes adding curls, head accessories, or simply adding alluringly smelling hair styling products that left a trail for his nose to pick up. Adding subtle touches to her make-up, making sure she wore nicely tight fitting jeans that emphasized her legs. She traded in her flats for semi-high heels that made her look taller.
The way he stroked his beard trying to show his disinterest made her internally smile every time. Other times his nostrils flared slightly and the skin around his eyes sometimes twitched when he liked what he saw.
It was a trademark of his.
Internally she was giddy at the attention. It boosted her ego to new heights since Kivanc.
Before she knew it, a warmth descended over her causing Camelia to question her feelings. She finally admitted to herself how much she liked him.  It was more than she would have liked to admit. Still, she was afraid of getting hurt.
Sometimes she wished she could read his mind to find out how he really felt about her instead of making her own assumptions.
But there was one thing she could never shake off and hated it gnawing at her insides. That gut feeling that told her they have met or she'd seen him somewhere before. It felt like it was compressed in the back of her mind. Still, she couldn't figure it out.
He was familiar. Too familiar.
*****
Later that day she went to the library to study. It was quiet with college students reading, studying or listening to music through their ear phones.
Camelia chose a private section which looked like a small living room with a warm earth pattern throughout consisting of brown, green, and beige tones. The deciliter corner held a couch and adjacent arm chairs, a table, overlooking a beautiful panoramic view of the campus.
Kent was close behind her as were the others posing as students. They scattered close by and pretended to read while keeping close watch to their surroundings. Camelia chose the library for a reason. It allowed her peace and quiet. It kept her out of sight and secure. For her paranoia increased when she was out in the open. It also provided a security blanket. The more she stayed indoors the safer she felt.
She dumps her heavy backpack onto the floor and sits down into the soft cushions, leans her heavy head back, closes her eyes and releases a sigh.
"Tired?" Kent asks glancing up from his phone, sitting across from her. He faced the entire library while her back was turned to it.
"Very." She replied monotonously and opened her eyes to stare at the white ceiling.
"No pain no gain." He says. Camelia could hear the smile in his voice without having to lift her head to peer at him.
"That's what they all say. I wish I could skip the year. I've been doing this for far too long. It feels like it's never going to end."
"You graduate in June right?" He asks. Camelia nods silently. "Fashion design is hard work. Trying to be the next Coco Chanel is difficult. They're hard shoes to fill."
"I would love to surpass her success one day. She's an original. Like she always said, 'In order to be irreplaceable one must always be different'." Camelia recites. "Those are hard standards to live by."
After a long pause, Kent speaks. "Keep your heels, head and standards high."
Camelia's eyes widen and she lifts her head to look at Kent. He just repeated a popular quote said by Coco Chanel.
"How did you...?" She asked in astonishment adjusting her posture and sat up properly.
"You'd be surprised how much you can find on Google." He answers, a twinkle of mischief in his eyes. His smile widens and Camelia's eyes dart to his long beard.
She frowns, wondering what he liked about it. It's gotten so much longer since she first met him.
It was unattractive and too bushy for her taste. It nearly hid half his face, athough it framed his eyes, making them pop out. A light stubble would make him more approachable. The eyeglasses he insisted to wear seemed entirely out of place, even more than before. He'd look much better with contact lenses.
He needs a makeover, she thinks quietly.
Kent appeared more like a lumberjack. Someone who should have been born in the early nineteen-hundreds in Bend, Oregon when loggers existed in the small town. All he was missing was a big ax and a flannel shirt, chopping down trees. He certainly had the bulky arms, height and looks.
"Ever think of trimming your beard?" She asks out loud. Camelia cringes inwardly, pursing her lips, not meaning to blurt out her thoughts.
Kent scratches his throat and combs the hairs with his fingers. "Too long for your liking is it?" He inquires with a lifted eyebrow.
Camelia's body had a will of it's own when it scoots to the edge of her seat with a hand reaching toward him. She plucks his eyeglasses off his nose and squints her gaze to look deeply into his baby blue eyes. He was incredibly handsome underneath all that hair.
Camelia roams her gaze over his face. His cheekbones where high and defined. His skin was smooth and glitch free. Her gaze rests on his mouth and frowns realizing something else.
His voice.
Sometimes when he spoke it sounded deeper and more masculine. Other times it was too reserved and quiet.
She blinks, snapping out of her thoughts. The realization of what she did crashed into her. Her face flamed in heat. Kent did not look appalled at all by her strange behavior. Instead he leaned closer, a hidden, unreleased hunger illuminating deep within the depths of his secretive eyes. They burned with a consuming need she's felt from him before.
Her fingers curled tighter around the glasses.
"I can see you better without them." She states in a whisper.
Vivid images of him without a beard and glasses run through her mind. It left her breathless and shaken. It froze her muscles and kept her immobile. Simply removing his glasses made him stand out to her. His nose, his eyebrows...he resembled someone she's seen before.
But where?
Who are you? Her eyes question.
There were things that didn't add up. He was controlling himself, but from what? He wasn't who he appears to be and he was keeping secrets from her only her father supposedly so knew.
What was he hiding?
His eyes darken, a tormented expression passes through them. He stretches out his hand silently asking for his glasses back.  There was a war waging inside his powerful frame. He seemed torn.
"May I have my glasses back?" He asks when she wouldn't let go. Camelia blinks and glances down. His fingers were mere centimeters from hers.
"Yes...of course." She replies back. His fingers slid up to breach the small gap between them.  Her cold fingers met his very warm ones and she inhales loudly, her eyes darting upward. A tremor shakes her frame at the hungry look he gives her.
"Hey Camelia! Girlfriend! I've been looking everywhere for you. Don't you ever answer your phone?"
Just like that the trance was broken. Kent and Camelia break apart, scooting back on the cushions carrying on as if nothing occurred, acting as they always did when others were around.
The small moments they shared were brief and only between the both of them.
Camelia turns her head towards Sammy who was gliding in loudly towards her holding a cup of Starbucks coffee in his hands. He always managed to make a scene wherever he went.
Out of nowhere his phone starts blasting pop music into the silent library. It was playing a hot dance club song she recognized, Milshake by the recording artist Kelis.
ð¶ ð¶ð¶
"My milk shake brings all the boys to the yard,
And there like,
It's better than yours,
Damn right it's better than yours,
I can teach you,
But I have to charge
I know you want it,
The thing that makes me what the guys go crazy for......"
ð¶ð¶ð¶
Sammy starts dancing as he comes closer and stops for a second to shimmy to the beat.
"You are in a library Sammy.  Keep it down!" She admonishes quietly, having the urge to shrink down into the cushions and cover her head.
"Oh shit! I get carried away whenever I hear my new ring tone." He silences his phone call and has the decency to twist his expression to one of annoyance.
He receives dirty looks from onlookers. The librarian lowers her spectacle's and shakes her head in disappointment from behind her desk.
"Sorry!" He whisper shouts to the librarian and blows her a kiss with a sweet innocent smile. She blushes as her mouth gaps open.
"You can be such a drama queen." Camelia mummers quietly as he sits beside her eyeing his black leather pants and matching black blouse with the letters. B. B. B. written on the front in white. She decides to ask him, avoiding Kent's burning gaze. "What do the triple B's stand for?" The moment he switched his gaze to Sammy she felt his irritation and the burn of his gaze in his direction.
Sammy glances down for a second and looks at her with a sweet smile and shrugs. "BAD. BLACK. BITCH."
Camelia muffles her laugh. "You are outrageous."
Her eyes narrow at the soft pink lipstick Sammy smeared on his lips. It was nearly the exact same shade as the bra she wore that night Kent saw her half naked. She blushes at the memory.
"Honey, I'm Sammy Princeton and I'm the bomb!" Sammy giggles. "Look at that cute pink blush." Squeezing her cheeks lightly. Camelia swats his hands away and rolls her eyes.
"Hey, what's up Superman?"Â Sammy greets Kent.
It's a name he was accustomed to calling him ever since they met. As always, Kent only answers with a professional business like nod.
Nobody saw the other side Kent kept hidden. He was somber and quiet around others. Only showing her a small glimpse of the teasing, playful side of him.
Now that Sammy mentioned it, Kent acted as though he was hiding his true identity. Using the glasses, facial hair, voice and clothing as a distraction.
Just like Superman.
It was eerily disturbing. The thought made a rush of goosebumps along her arms and legs.
"Don't ya just love the holidays?" Sammy takes a long gulp of his coffee and sets it down on the coffee table. "This pumpkin spiced latte is like Christmas in a cup!" He clears his throat quietly and directs his attention to Camelia. "Sooooo, I have wonderful news that I'm dying to share with you!" He exclaims. "I am throwing a Halloween party on the 31st and you Missy are going to be there!"
Her eyes lite up. A wild thrill cascaded through her body.
What she wouldn't give to feel free again. Going to a party sounded like a breath of fresh air. How fun it would be fun to dress up again and feel like a child but then it vanishes like a puff of smoke from a witches cauldron.
After the threatening call and the attack outside the house Kent had been extra, extra cautions and way over protective. The first thing he would say, It's too dangerous. In some ways he was worse than her own parents. It bordered on the lines of possessiveness. She knew, If it were possible, Kent would follow her inside a women's public restroom if need be.
He'd never allow it.
Her shoulders slumped, feeling the weight, the burden of her freedom being squashed.
Camelia shakes her head, hating to burst his bubble of excitement. "I don't think that's possible Sammy..." She tried searching for a delicate way to explainâmake him understand why but couldn't find any.
He knew about her situation.  He also he knew about what happened a couple weeks ago, having to explain why she got a new number when she gave it to him.
"They won't let me."Â She continues somberly, crossing her legs out of discomfort. She knew he wasn't going to like her answer.
"Like hell they won't." Sammy says with a huff. "You'll be dressed in a disguise, a costume. No one will ever know...right Superman?"
His eye glasses were placed back on his face when Camelia directed her attention back to him. She looked at him with a earnest expression, hoping, maybe he would agree and find a way.
But Kent's lips were set in a grim line. She could already feel a flat, unequivocal No, emitting from his body language. His emotions acted like a bucket of ice water dousing her hope.
"It would not be wise." Kent replies with a slightly guilty expression. "To risk her safetyâ."
"Oh would you chill out!" Sammy shrieks loudly. He covers his mouth with a hand at his outburst earning more attention as student snicker in the background. "She'd wear a costume, nobody would know. I'm inviting you too Superman, knowing you're her shadow anywhere she goes. Come on it'll be fun!" Sammy continues in a whisper and pleading expression, looking from Kent to Camelia searching for a positive response. "I swear on the iconic Coco's grave if you don't come I'm ain't going to your birthday party next week." He threatens with a bit of slang which only came out when he was irritated.
Camelia stiffened at his words. When Sammy swore on Chanel he meant it. He was obsessed more than she was.
Her birthday was rolling by quickly on October 20th. In precisely a week. The only friends she invited were Sammy and Ricky. Most of the attendees in the guest list were relatives and close family friends of the family. It was supposedly going to be a intimate event with a Ancient Greek theme. It was her mother's idea. She insisted and refused to allow her milestone to pass uneventful.
However, Camelia was not in the mood for much celebrating. She was limited to go anywhere for her 21st birthday so everybody, excluding her, decided the safest place was at home. If she had a choice, the ideal location to celebrate would have been leaving town and going somewhere warm and tropical.
But again, it was not her choice to make. Nothing ever was anymore.
"That's unfair and you know it." She retorts, her frustration mounting. "Look, Sammy I would love to come, I wish I could...but...."
"I see no harm done." Sammy argues. "It'll be at my parent's house...we are inviting like fifty people tops!" He continues not seeming to hear her protest. "You were almost taken at your house, remember?"
Sammy came from a wealthy family. Their mansion had more than enough space to accommodate a small army if needed. She was sure the night would hold much excitement. She'd never been to a adult Halloween party before. But she resumed staying detached, remaining indifferent, acting cool as a cucumber.
"Her birthday party will take place in a controlled environment. At her home. What happened at her house will never happen again, I made sure of it.  I'll have a security team patrolling all premises. Having her go to your party will only allow whoever is watching an easy target. I cannot allow it." Kent proclaims with finality.
"Bullshit!" Sammy says with a dismissive hand gesture. He just wiped what Kent said and threw it behind him like he never heard it. "Instead of adding to her pile of dog shit, why don't you give her a break? This flower in front of you is withering, you're blind if you can't see it." He explains, pointing a finger at Camelia. "Stop thinking about solving the problem and drag her deeper in her misery. Let her live for once, for fucks sake."
She'd always felt like a radiant rainbow. But these days it was covered by a hovering cloud. A suspended flower trapped in a capsule everybody was trying to preserve and keep alive. It was depressing to feel helpless.
"You cuss too much." Camelia notes demurely.
"Bitch please! I call them sentence enhancers!" Sammy's winged eyelashes widen and covers his giggle with his hand.
Camelia smiles. She wished she had half of Sammy's bubbling personality. She envied him.
Kent looked ready to kill him with the gun he hid under his clothing.
Camelia exhales loudly and curls her body back further against the cushions, raking a hand through her long hair. "I'm so sick and tired of all this..." She murmurs silently, ignoring the both of them, her eyes wandering into the distance unseeingly. All of a sudden, it dawned on her how really tired she was. As if the world drained everything she believed in, everything she hoped for, everything she wanted.
Her soul was restless.
She was deprived of life's simplest pleasures. A prisoner. She truly wished she could skip the year, sleep like a hibernating bear and wake up when all of it was over.
Kent and Sammy share a look. Sammy raises his eyebrows and nudges his head toward Camelia giving him I told you so look.
Sammy made a good point.
Stefan felt her pain, he really did. He tried to lighten the mood at times, trying desperately to make her smile or nudge a reaction out of her. But it was as clear as dayâthe light inside her was slowly dimming.
Most girls in her situation would have rebelled, screamed, or ranted and raved their frustrations and difficult to control. They would have attempted to run away countless times already. But Camelia, went with the flow. Followed without complaint. Accepted everything with a brave smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.
The forced sweet smile faded as the days went by. She was miserable. She was growing more hollow with each passing day. He watched her shoulders slouch as her head bowed. Before his very eyes, she pushed farther and farther away, alienating herself.
Stefan was fearful one of these days she'd fully combust without warning. Like a ticking time bomb. It was only a matter of time. A person as innocent as her could only take so much. But one thing he was sure of, she was strong. Stronger than most females. Highly independent. Incredibly intelligent and decades wiser than her years.
Stefan recalled the way she looked at him earlierâthe warmth, hope and tenderness in her eyes. He hated disappointing his Cameliaâhis Angel. A seductively, enticing, miserable angel. He ripped his lingering gaze from her beautiful sad face.
Stefan felt the guilt eating his insides. Her life should be just beginning. He was the one responsible for complicating her life and restricting her from living it. Standing in her way made him feel like one of the bad guys.
It tugged the strings of his heart.
Sometimes people lose by taking risks but he'd be damned if he let her lose an opportunity to live. For once he wanted to do something that benefited her. It was difficult to deny those dark blue eyes.
"All right." Stefan starts with a resigned acceptance gaining Camelia and Sammy's attention. "We'll come but under one condition." Setting a ultimatum. If they were going things were going to be done his way. "My team will be joining us for your party. I am not going without back up. If anything happens it's your head on a platter." Pointing a finger at Sammy.
Camelia gazes at him with surprise and her beautifully plump lips part in shock.
"Superman, you're my hero!" Sammy was bubbling with so much excitement, he was bouncing on his seat. "I can just kiss you right now."
Kent holds up his hand. "A simple thank you will suffice."
She smiles gratefully and looks away shyly, another light blush coating her smooth skin. Stefan internally smiles. He would do anything for her. Her smile alone made him feel like a hero.
"Start searching for a sexy costume." Sammy says wiggling his perfectly arched eyebrows at Camelia. "Oh I know! How about cat woman or poison ivy....no wait that's too provocative, and knowing you, you wouldn't agree to have your ass on display." Sammy taps his lips with a finger deep in thought. "I got it. Little red riding hood and you Superman will dress up as the big bad wolf. God knows you have the arms, the height and the right amount of intimidation to pull it off. My God I'm a genius." Praising himself loudly in front of them.
Camelia laughs loudly and quickly covers her mouth out of embarrassment. She darts a glance at Kent and finds him watching her with a unreadable expression. He gives her a reassuring wink. It makes her toes curl and her heart racing like a humming bird's wings.
Camelia was excited and looking forward to the party and going with him as her 'big bad wolf'. She knew he was doing it for her.  She appreciated the effort he exercised on her behalf no matter how small.
A grateful heart was a magnet for miracles.
"Thank you Kent."
Anything for you.
"You're welcome." He says, keeping his smile to himself. He hid the intimate look he wanted to give her.
Anything.
_____________________________________________________________________________
And another one bites the dust....
Thanks for reading! Thanks for the votes and comments too! Hope all of liked it!
Chapter 17 is next Friday as promised. More of Sammy and his eccentric behavior coming soon. Take a wild guess what the chapter is going to be about...! I'm excited to read your reactions for this one and the next one I'm planning.
Please vote, comment and share!
Thanks,
Shaz