The Book of Rook

Chapter 4

PHOENIX

I open my eyes and roll over on my mattress that's thrown on the floor. I arrived in New York yesterday. My fucking ex-husband Brad started harassing me at work so bad he was escorted by security but not before grabbing my arm, tight, and whispering that this wasn't over yet.

I look over at my arm and still see the purple bruises, fading since the incident was last week. Fucker. I thought I was rid of him, but he had to come slithering out of his hole like the cowardly snake he is. I called my uncle and he suggested I leave Ohio and move to New York with his daughter, my cousin, temporarily.

Angelica and I would hang out during our summer breaks. Our parents would rent a summer house in the Hamptons. Well, really Uncle Adrian would rent out a beach house and invite my family. Either way, we had so much fun until my parents were killed. I ended up being raised by my strict grandma from my mom's side so no more summers with the Jefferies, my paternal side of the family. Nan hated my dad since she always thought my mom would marry a childhood friend of the family, who grew up to be an investor. My dad was a kind soul but he was a professional fighter so he was tattooed and a little uncouth for Nan's taste. The Jefferies were a well to do family but according to Nan, mom could have done so much better. That plane crash changed my life at 16. Orphaned and moving from my life in New York to Ohio. Talk about culture shock. Don't get me wrong, Ohio is nice but nothing like New York.

Thinking back to the funeral of my parents, Uncle Adrian hugged me and told me if I ever needed anything, to reach out to him or Angelica. Nan died a few weeks after my wedding to Brad so he was the only "family" I had in Ohio and that turned out to be a nightmare. He made sure to isolate me from my family. I could only call them when he was home and it was only for 15 minutes at a time. He would monitor my cell phone to make sure I didn't call when he wasn't home. Once I started a plan to escape Brad, I bought myself a burner phone I buried in our backyard so he couldn't find it.

Anyway, I slowly get up and trip over my open suitcase which has the picture of me, Violet, Tiffany and Eden when we went to Cancun last year. It was taken the day we left. The day after I snuck out of the room of my mystery man. How I wished I got his name. My mystery man stirred things in me that I thought long dead. I felt more with him than the two years I was with Brad.

Putting the picture back, I step over the suitcase and grab my toiletry bag to freshen up in the shared bathroom. My cousin lives in a small two-bedroom apartment with only one bathroom. Never ideal for two women but this is only temporary. Very temporary. In fact, I'm going to plug in my laptop and start my apartment search after breakfast. I have some money saved so I can stay unemployed for a little while but not too long.

I get dressed in a pair of yoga pants and a Linkin Park t shirt. I fore go a bra since I'm staying in and put my brown hair in a ponytail. I didn't dye my hair back to black once it started growing out. That was an impulsive thing which is so out of character for me. Cutting it short was also a mistake I regretted shortly thereafter so now my hair is just past my shoulders.

I find my cousin in the kitchen talking on her cell phone as she's pacing back and forth, smiling. I'm sure she's talking to her boyfriend. They met a year ago and she's been nonstop talking about him. I've been dying to meet him. To meet the man who changed Angel from a cynic to a woman in love. Hanging out with her best friend Bishop Raines made her weary in love. Bishop had an aversion to love. She used to say it was just something written by sappy authors and true love didn't exist. Imagine my surprise when I found out she married her professor, Tristan. From what Angel told me, it was love at first sight for him but lust at first sight for her. Tristan eventually won her heart and now they are happily married. It's been a hot minute since I've seen Bishop. I think it was when we were in our teens at the Hamptons. The summer before my parents died. I don't remember much except Bishop had an annoying twin brother named Rook from the stories they told me. Weird names, I know, but their parents were chess lovers. Rook was sent to London to visit a friend so I never actually met him. I remember hearing Angel say this was the first break she had from Rook since he would follow her everywhere. It seems he had a crush on her and would tell everyone they were going to get married. Of course, he would crush on Angel. All the guys did. She's so pretty and has a heart of gold.